Kettlebell Overhead Warm Up

The Kettlebell Overhead Warm up is an excellent exercise to start off your kettlebell workout. All kettlebell enthusiasts should practice holding a kettlebell overhead before starting to press the kettlebell overhead. The act of holding the kettlebell with a straight arm forces your smaller shoulder stabilizing muscles to work hard. It is these small stabilizer muscles that hold the shoulder in place to allow for the larger muscles of the shoulder to work effectively.

How to Perform the Warm Up

To perform this simple but very effective warm up, just hold the kettlebell overhead and then first perform a lunge, then go down to both knees, return back to the lunge and then stand.

The ability for your shoulder to stabilizer during this movement is a good sign that you are ready to move on to more sophisticated pressing movements like the overhead press.

To begin the warm up only perform 1 repetition on one side before changing hands. Repeat this procedure for up to 20 total reps.

Once your shoulders feel comfortable with this exercise then try 2 reps on one side before changing. Progress by adding a few more reps onto each side until you can comfortably complete 60 seconds on one side before changing arms.

One small tip: ensure you perform this exercise on a padded or carpeted floor because it can be a bit brutal on your knees!

Keep an eye on your core muscles

You will notice that during this warm up exercise that one side may feel a lot more difficult that the other side. If this is the case and you are struggling to stand up or control your movement on one side then you may have some core weakness.

If you discover this core weakness on one side then great. Continue to perform more reps on your bad side than your good side until both sides even out.

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Greg Brookes is the founder of Kettlebell Workouts, GB Personal Training , and over 10 Workout Apps on both iTunes and Google Play. Using kettlebell training he has produced results for celebrities, athletes and stay at home Moms. He has been featured in Men's Health, Women's Fitness, Men's Fitness, and Health & Fitness Magazine where he wrote a monthly column. Labelled as "the trainer to the trainers" he delivers seminars and a regular newsletter to help Personal Trainers improve their skills and achieve better results for their clients. Continue reading